Tarjei Bø shot straight – came back to the top after three years – NRK Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule

– Delicious! He knew he could. Not every season I felt it depended on me. But today I proved that nobody could take me, no matter how they shot, and it’s a good feeling for an old man, says Tarjei Bø to NRK after Thursday’s sprint at Kontiolahti.

Bø had his breakthrough as a biathlete when he became an Olympic relay champion in Vancouver in 2010. Later in the year, more specifically on December 10 and 11, he achieved his first two World Cup victories.

Subsequently, his career has been marked by many ups and downs, but also by many falls. Therefore, it has taken longer to reach a double-digit number of World Cup victories than most predicted ten years ago.

But on Thursday afternoon it finally happened in Kontiolahti, Finland. Tarjei Bø fired ten shots in the sprint. Also, he got to the trail. Therefore, he kept little brother Johannes Thingnes Bø and everyone else behind him on the hit list.

Revenge week

And it happened after Bø disappointed himself, especially in the stands, in the first two races of the season.

– The first weekend was below average, especially with the run-up to the season that I’ve had, where things have worked very well. So it was the week of the rematch, and I focused on having a good mood, that was the most important thing. If I have it, it usually works out fine, Tarjei Bø tells NRK.

The last time Tarjei Bø won a World Cup race was in the Östersund sprint on December 2, 2017, that is, three years ago.

– Regardless of what happened last weekend, Tarjei is probably my fiercest competitor in the World Cup overall. Now he has started to accumulate points, and this is a match that I have dreamed of, and that I hope to have further, says the best biathlete in the world in recent seasons, Johannes Thingnes Bø, who finished third in the sprint with a boom and a pretty heavy day on the trail.

– Has made it hard to shine

Here’s how he describes his older brother’s race for victory:

– Finally, I am the one who can stay here and show it off, not the other way around. Today I am a proud brother. What Tarjei did today is an absolutely perfect sprint. It’s Bjørndalen’s level above that, with controlled opening and raising throughout the race, shooting full house and hitting throughout the race, says Johannes Thingnes Bø, who is ready for one thing:

– Tarjei has won very little considering the qualities he has as a biathlete.

Tarjei completely agrees.

– My relationship with sport throughout my career is that it is about winning. But I think I’ve earned too little, I think myself, he admits, and he blames the little brother somewhat.

– Johannes and Martin Fourcade have made it difficult for the rest of us to shine. Now there is only one of them left, but he’s my brother, so we hope he starts. What I think is more fun is that even if Johannes had shot squarely, he would have taken it, says Tarjei Bø.

– Do not give me without fighting

Although Johannes Thingnes Bø wishes his brother success, he would prefer to return to the top of the podium as soon as possible. Preferably already at the beginning of the hunt.

At the same time, he knows that the older brother has had a better preparation for the season than himself.

– Now I have had many years ahead of me, so if this is your year you will get it. But I don’t give up without a fight and hope of course I can catch him at the start of the hunt on Saturday, smile.